Episode 48
The Red Wolf is the 48th episode of the Hajime no Ippo anime series, and it was released on September 5, 2001. Summary The first round begins with Volg immediately charging to Ippo's location, where a battle of jabs begins and neither fighter is able to land a decisive blow. Volg is however able to land an uppercut causing Ippo to be more cautious and tighten his guard. Despite being more careful, Ippo receives another uppercut, which changed from angle when Ippo closed his eyes to receive the impact, and went through the guard. Ippo backs up against the ropes, but Volg follows him relentlessly and attacks again. Having nowhere to run, Ippo curls up to defend himself, but Volg's three consecutive uppercuts force his head out. Ippo tries to get away from the ropes, but Volg follows and corners him instead. Ippo receives a barrage of hits that leaves the audience wondering if he ever stood a chance. After Volg manages to land a damaging punch that leaves Ippo confused, he prepares to finish with a straight. Ippo, who seems to be unconscious while standing, manages to counter the punch, and then delivers several combinations that send Volg back to the center of the ring in shock. At Kamogawa's advice, Ippo closes the distance and begins trading with Volg. Now in the situation everybody expected from two in fighters from the beginning, the spectators wonder who will emerge victorious. The exchange continues and neither fighter is able to get the upper hand by the time the bell rings. In his corner, Volg tells Ramuda that out boxing is not an option, as Ippo will close the distance. They conclude the best course of action is to beat him in an in fight to demoralize him. Meanwhile, Ippo tells Kamogawa that even though he felt like he was with a caged animal in the ring, going forward is the best option for him. The second round begins and the fighters engage each other, with Volg dominating with hooks and uppercuts. He notes to himself that he does not want to use the white fang, but he realizes that normal combinations are not enough as Ippo advances. Not wanting to end Ippo's career with the white fang, Volg hopes he can take him down with only regular punches, but Ippo dodges and connects his gazelle punch, sending Volg to the floor as Ramuda notes how Volg's softness is the reason it happened. After the eight count, Volg is finally able to get back up due to his left hand reducing the impact of the gazelle punch. Despite Kamogawa's opposition to the idea, Ippo goes on the offensive and sends numerous combinations to his opponent. Volg dodges and blocks all of Ippo's hits, and even manages to connect a few himself. Ippo does not realize that Volg is slowly recovering, and attempts another gazelle punch, but is blocked. Slowly losing to Volg in the exchange, Ippo begins to back down and tighten his cover instead of attacking. His efforts to protect himself are in vain, as Volg throws an uppercut that even though blocked, is followed by a chopping right that connects on Ippo's head and sends him down immediately. Still confused about the events that lead to him being knocked down, Ippo struggles to get up before the count ends. He briefly stands up, but falls back down and turns around in order to help himself up with the corner. As soon as the referee resumes the fight, the bell rings ending the round. While Volg and Ramuda go over strategies, Kamogawa explains how the white fang works to a still confused Ippo. Knowing that with Ippo's current skill level there is no way of stopping the white fang, Kamogawa can do nothing other than telling him to "go for it" as the time for the break runs out.Category:Anime Episodes Category:Season 1 Episodes